Tuberculosis diagnostics: Why we need more qualitative research

"After decades of neglect, the field of tuberculosis (TB) diagnostics is advancing. New tests have been developed and evaluated, existing ones are being adapted for new contexts, and decision-makers have a rich pipeline to choose from and invest in [1]. Yet, some important gaps remain, including the need for a simple, point-of-care (POC) test [2]. In order to be able to develop, validate, and scale-up diagnostics, a thorough assessment of the context and settings of use at the different points of care is necessary. This requires research approaches that are able to take into account processes and reveal complex relationships and patterns involved in making diagnostics work in the real world. Qualitative research approaches are ideally suited for this. They offer a range of methodologies, such as in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, participant observations and discourse analysis, that can make sense of processes and meanings in their natural settings, and answer the how and why questions[...]"@eng